Earth Care Book Club Meets June 7

The Humane Gardener: Nurturing a Backyard Habitat for Wildlife
By Nancy Lawson
Sunday, June 7, 2026, 11:30 a.m.
Little Sanctuary

On June 7th, the Earth Care Book Club will be discussing The Humane Gardener: Nurturing a Backyard Habitat for Wildlife, by Nancy Lawson. This little gem of a book discusses the concept that Lawson calls “compassionate landscaping,” in which she challenges many of our false dichotomies in gardening: good vs bad insects, acceptable garden plants vs weeds, neatness vs gentle, life-affirming chaos.

As she says, “Perfection is a human construct, a poor substitute for the natural exuberances and resiliency that make a house a home - not just for us, but for all species” (p. 17).

Nancy Lawson is a journalist, editor, and naturalist. She writes a column for American Gardener, is a national honorary director for WildOnes, and this is the first of two books that she has written. Her talks are well worth attending if you ever get a chance. 

As she outlines in The Humane Gardener, Lawson started as a traditional gardener, but after events in the world kept her away from her normal gardening routine for 6 months or more, she found herself admiring the grace and abundance with which her land started developing naturally. Her interest piqued, she started observing what was happening without her constant fussing and finagling.

There are six chapters in this book, and each is accompanied by a multi-page garden vignette of a natural gardener and their garden from across the country. Part “how to,” part “why to,” and full of vignettes from her own natural gardening experiences, this book is a fast, enjoyable read that will leave you itching to get out into your own yard to see what’s going on.

As always, all are welcome, even if you haven’t had a chance to read (or finish) the book. We’d love your company! We hope to see you on June 7th, after the service, in the Little Sanctuary.